Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice
In a society as diverse as ours,
maneuvering through its multiple cultures can be complex and confusing, as well
as rich and delightful (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). Those of us who
work with other people’s children are continually juggling our own culture, the
culture of our early childhood education program, and the cultures of the
families in our program (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).
I have always been part of the
middle working class. Growing up, my parents worked hard to provide my sister
and me with the things we needed, and they instilled in us the importance of a
hard work ethic. I got my first job at the age of 12, and have been working ever
since. Now that I am an adult and working as an educator, I am still part of
the middle class. I have worked hard to be able to have nice things, sometimes
working three jobs at a time. My schooling, housing, and car have all been paid
for from these jobs, and that gives me a sense of accomplishment, that I can
get these things on my own through hard work and dedication.
Although I am very proud of myself
for these accomplishments, I do sometimes feel discriminated against. I have
experienced class-ism in the reverse. What I mean by this is; class-ism is
usually an attitude, action, or practice that gives preferential treatment to
those with more economic resources or higher social status, and treats as
inferior or denies access to those with fewer economic resources or less social
status (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). In my case, I have had people
assume that I am of a higher social status and am given the things I have
because of it. This upsets me because they dismiss all of the hard work I have
put in, in order to have the things I do.
Experiencing class-ism can and has
affected my work with young children. I work in a pretty rural area, where families work hard to make ends meat. I sometimes feel bad wearing nice things
when I meet with them for conferences or functions at school. Because of this,
I will dress down so I don’t get discriminated against. I want them to
recognize me for the hard worker that I am, and not just assume that I am
handed things in life just because.
Reference
Derman-Sparks,
L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and
ourselves. Washington, DC: National
Association for the Education of Young
Children (NAEYC).
I think class-ism has been in existence as long as human history. However, the fact that it has not been eradicated does not mean it is a good thing but rather it shows how deeply rooted and strong it is. When people are put in class and treated based on their income, wealth, property ownership or job status it has some negatives effects. The example you gave is a good one that opened my eyes to other bad effects of class-ism that I never thought of. Thanks for the enlightenment. Good post.
ReplyDeleteMelanie,
ReplyDeleteGood post! In my opinion, I do not think you should have to cover up who you are just so people will not think of you in a certain way. You should be proud of who you are at all times… You earned it! I believe that you will help those around you (who you dress down for) feel and see that they, too, can be successful and buy nice things by working hard like you. Our children and students look up to us as role models, so we should give them the “real”, genuine us. So be proud of your accomplishments and don’t hide it. People are going to think and say what they want regardless. “Ultimately, the most important thing we bring to our teaching is who we are” (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010, p. 22).
Reference
Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children
(NAEYC).
Ashley T.
You wrote a very interesting blog this week. I can understand and agree to a sense, that others discount the amount of hard work that it takes to be able to afford those nice things. My parents have been known to push me towards a career where you make the better money, but that is not what the education field is about. It is about working hard, and working for the families and children that you interact with on a daily basis. Good blog, I enjoyed reading it!
ReplyDelete